MotorTrend 2022 Lightning Lariat 3-Year Verdict: Plenty to Love, Little to Hate

[CD4TNF]

https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2022-ford-f150-lightning-lariat-long-term-update-18-verdict

The editor drove it for the past 18 months. Many of the strengths and weaknesses we've shared as owners here are similar options of the article writer.

Strength

1. Comfort
2. Performance
3. F150 things
4. Cost to charge

Weaknesses

1. Range. Actual range VS GOM and EPA range
2. Backup camera
3. OTA updates

MotorTrend is continuing their long term test of the Lightning and the writer is handing it off to the next editor. Overall great to see a positive review from a mainstream auto reviewer organization.

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[WXman]

What is "GOM" range?

I agree that keeping this truck 95% F-150 and just swapping out the powertrain was brilliant on Ford's part. It kept costs down, kept reliability up, and makes the truck more serviceable and cheaper to insure.

 

[MountainAlive]

Pretty straightforward review. It’s cheaper to run compared to its gas cousin, don’t exceed 70mph if you want long battery range, and it’s great at truck stuff. I don’t understand the rear view camera complaints though. Mine always comes on in reverse. Never had an issue with that. For safety I do feel all these big truck need to automatically display the front camera when you first start the truck and start moving (up to say 7mph). So much can hide below the hood on these things.

 

[CD4TNF]

The range number on the front dash is affectionately and aggravatingly called "Guess-O-Meter" because the range is a best guess by the truck. Basically our short hand way of saying to not trust the actual range number displayed.


I usually take 50miles off the GOM range and call that my range.

Or

I'll usually use invertedspear's calculator for my range figure based on the truck's reported efficiency. Much more accurate. I've been safe using this method on my road trips.

https://lightningcalcs.pages.dev/?battery=131

 

[Mike G]

The range number on the front dash is affectionately and aggravatingly called "Guess-O-Meter" because the range is a best guess by the truck. Basically our short hand way of saying to not trust the actual range number displayed.


I usually take 50miles off the GOM range and call that my range.

Or

I'll usually use invertedspear's calculator for my range figure based on the truck's reported efficiency. Much more accurate. I've been safe using this method on my road trips.

https://lightningcalcs.pages.dev/?battery=131

50 miles! Perzackly! That's also my fudge factor number for the GOM.

 

[Thunderand…]

What is "GOM" range?

I agree that keeping this truck 95% F-150 and just swapping out the powertrain was brilliant on Ford's part. It kept costs down, kept reliability up, and makes the truck more serviceable and cheaper to insure.

Guess o meter

 

[WXman]

Ahhh ok. I've had my truck for one month this weekend. It's been on one long trip and lots of commuting around central Kentucky. So far my actual range has been consistently better than the dash display. I can, for example, drive 30 actual miles and only use 24 miles of range.

 

[CerebralPrimate]

I saw that review and thought it was fair, but then they reviewed their same year F-150 Hybrid and said people should choose it over the Lightning, that it was a better total package. WTF?!?! How?

 

[djwildstar]

So far my actual range has been consistently better than the dash display. I can, for example, drive 30 actual miles and only use 24 miles of range.

As a broad generalization, the truck gets the advertised EPA range estimate at about 55 MPH, give or take a bit. If you generally drive slower than that (for example, mostly back-roads or in-town where speeds are 30-45 MPH), then you'll get better range. If you drive faster, you'll get significantly less range: for example, you'll take about a 20% hit at 70 MPH and a 36% hit at 80 MPH.

The "Guess-O-Meter" range estimate is based on recent driving history, so it should get a bit more accurate as your truck learns how and where you usually drive. Be warned, though: this means that the displayed range can be way off if you're doing something different than your usual routine, or if you just got back from a road trip.

The best way to handle this is to set a destination in the on-board navigation: when a destination is set, the truck figures speed limits along the route, elevation change, as well as current traffic and weather into the range estimate. It is usually pretty close, if you drive at the posted speed limits (if you drive over the limit, you'll get less range). I tend t set the destination, and then change my driving speeds so that I arrive with whatever reserve range I'm comfortable with.

 

[RipInPepz]

I saw that review and thought it was fair, but then they reviewed their same year F-150 Hybrid and said people should choose it over the Lightning, that it was a better total package. WTF?!?! How?

Its funny because the hybrid is a worse version of the Lightning and the fully ICE truck. Just choose one or the other, not in between!

 

[WXman]

As a broad generalization, the truck gets the advertised EPA range estimate at about 55 MPH, give or take a bit. If you generally drive slower than that (for example, mostly back-roads or in-town where speeds are 30-45 MPH), then you'll get better range. If you drive faster, you'll get significantly less range: for example, you'll take about a 20% hit at 70 MPH and a 36% hit at 80 MPH.

The "Guess-O-Meter" range estimate is based on recent driving history, so it should get a bit more accurate as your truck learns how and where you usually drive. Be warned, though: this means that the displayed range can be way off if you're doing something different than your usual routine, or if you just got back from a road trip.

The best way to handle this is to set a destination in the on-board navigation: when a destination is set, the truck figures speed limits along the route, elevation change, as well as current traffic and weather into the range estimate. It is usually pretty close, if you drive at the posted speed limits (if you drive over the limit, you'll get less range). I tend t set the destination, and then change my driving speeds so that I arrive with whatever reserve range I'm comfortable with.

Yeah I'm in a perhaps unique position where I drive every type of road imaginable on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. Gravel roads, 35 MPH one lane roads, 55 MPH two lane highways, 55 MPH four lane highways where everybody drives 65, and 4 lane 70 MPH interstates are all on my menu each day. My average (not "this trip") is still at 2.8 mi/kWh over the term of ownership thus far. I've seen daily commutes as high as 3.1, never lower than 2.5.

Yesterday I had to make a run to pick up parts from a dealership and I had the cruise set to 79 MPH. Still saw 2.7 mi/kWh.

What's interesting about that to me is that 2.8 average is FAR higher than what I see just about everybody else posting. Seems like most people I see are in the 2.0 to 2.2 range. Mathematically that's a huge difference. We're talking around 70 miles of range difference. I haven't yet figured out why there is such a difference. Do most people drive these trucks at 95 MPH everywhere they go?

 

[djwildstar]

Yeah I'm in a perhaps unique position where I drive every type of road imaginable on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. [...] My average (not "this trip") is still at 2.8 mi/kWh over the term of ownership thus far.

My overall average, over 28 months and just shy of 38,000 miles, is 2.4 mi/kWh. My "typical" drive is a 75-mile round trip commute. Much of this is on Interstates where traffic speeds can be a 10 MPH crawl one day and a 70 MPH sprint the next, and the rest is on local roads with speed limits between 25 MPH and 45 MPH. I also take 2-4 road trips in the 900mi to 1500mi range each year, and typically drive those at 10% over the posted speed limit.

 

[jsamp17]

Yeah I'm in a perhaps unique position where I drive every type of road imaginable on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. Gravel roads, 35 MPH one lane roads, 55 MPH two lane highways, 55 MPH four lane highways where everybody drives 65, and 4 lane 70 MPH interstates are all on my menu each day. My average (not "this trip") is still at 2.8 mi/kWh over the term of ownership thus far. I've seen daily commutes as high as 3.1, never lower than 2.5.

Yesterday I had to make a run to pick up parts from a dealership and I had the cruise set to 79 MPH. Still saw 2.7 mi/kWh.

What's interesting about that to me is that 2.8 average is FAR higher than what I see just about everybody else posting. Seems like most people I see are in the 2.0 to 2.2 range. Mathematically that's a huge difference. We're talking around 70 miles of range difference. I haven't yet figured out why there is such a difference. Do most people drive these trucks at 95 MPH everywhere they go?

Those are fantastic numbers! From them I would have to guess that you may be somewhere generally warm and generally flat --Florida maybe? Also, possibly your freeway time is significantly less than other distances?

I got mine in December and was hit with the cold snaps here and didn't see 2.0/mi for a while. It seems to me that everything that could affect range is going your way and that's awesome.

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